X-Phile
"It's amazing the impact we can have on people's lives without knowing it" - Mulder X-Phile is the fourth episode of Season 10. With Scully kept in Canada by an awkward flu suffered by locals, Mulder travels to rural Montana when he finds somebody impersonating him online. What he finds is a shock to the system. Summary An unseen man types on an internet message board, blogging about a government conspiracy to poison the water supplies of small towns in America with an experimental drug compound that increases brain activity. He scrolls through comments, and finds one that simply asks "Are you really him?". The person confirms that they are, and that he posts because he wants everyday citizens to know the truth. He signs off the comment by writing "Keep watching the skies, and trust no one - F.W.Mulder." Act One On Saturday morning, Mulder arrives outside the FBI Building with a box of items. He notices a delivery van parked outside and looks excited. Walking inside, he speaks with the main lobby security guard, Jeff, who confirms that a large delivery has been made to his office. Almost giddy, Mulder goes down to his office to find the delivery of furniture, office supplies and misc has been left in the middle of the previously derelict office. He signs a form from one of the delivery men, a rather surly man, and stands observing the scene. Mulder begins rearranging and moving furniture into place. It's hard work, and on one occasion he is almost squashed by a filing cabinet. After much endeavour, he finally has everything in place, and it looks identical to the way it did years before. As a final act, he takes a 'I Want to Believe' poster out of his own box and pins it to the wall. He takes a large bunch of files and puts them in the cabinets, but is disturbed by how empty they look. At St. Giles Hosptial, Scully is examining an ill but overdramatic middle aged man who is convinced that he has a killer virus he has seen on TV. Scully curtly insists this isn't the case, before being told by an annoyed fellow doctor that she has a phone call. She picks up and it is Mulder on the other end of the line. He tells her he has "rebuilt" their "fortress of solitude" and asks when she will arrive so they can start filling up their collection of case files. Scully tells him she is going to be delayed by a few days because of a bout of flu that she describes as "a large contagion of hypochondriacs". We see that the waiting room is full with fellow citizens who are equally hysterical about their ailments, spreading rumours about the supposed killer virus. Scully is called away and hangs up. Disappointed, Mulder sits back in his chair and quickly becomes bored, moving ornaments and even replacing the pencils in the ceiling. Back at St. Giles, Scully attempts to calm down the panicking patients. One of them vomits, sending the people into a frenzy. One of them shouts that they need the "emergency medical team". Scully desperately responds that "there's no such thing!" Mulder lies back in his chair, and his roused by the sound of somebody emerging from the elevator. He scrambles into place and Agent Ed Hamshaw enters. After a brief introduction, Hamshaw explains that he is needing help with a case involving computer hackers, since barely anyone else is in and that he lost a bet. He says that Doggett told him about Mulder's eye for detail and asks for assistance. With nothing else to do, Mulder agrees. As they trawl through computer records, Hamshaw strikes up a conversation about Mulder's investigations into the paranormal, and Mulder is flippant in reply, amusing Hamshaw. Mulder notices on one of the pages the user name F_MulderTNO and when Hamshaw goes out for coffee, he examines it. Hamshaw returns to the office to find that Mulder is gone, and some of the printed files are missing. Act Two Doggett sits at home watching TV. He is called and answers. It is Mulder on the other end of the line, and he is driving. After a brief exchange of awkward small talk, Mulder asks Doggett to call Agent Hamshaw and tell him that he has called Mulder away on an important task. Doggett is annoyed at being disturbed on Saturday, but agrees. When he asks Mulder what he is doing, Mulder explains he is running a "personal errand" relating to an "identity crisis" and is going down to Montana. Amused, Doggett hangs up. TBC Background Information Trivia *First episode of 10-13 not to directly feature any paranormal activity. Writer's Notes Cast of Characters *Fox Mulder *Dana Scully *John Doggett *Edward Hamshaw *Dr Conver *Jeff *Danny Trebeck *Ronnie Keys *Carter Banks *Terry *Carla *Stefano